Goals & Accomplishments for the 2011 Garden Season

Olivia WhiteHospice Garden

Usual garden maintenance (bringing out hardscape, weeding, watering, planting (annualsand lost perennials), repairing and adding drip lines, repairing walkways,general garden maintenance, composting, harvesting vegetable for the home). Add a 2^nd weekday workday (Mon.& and Thurs. and 1 Saturday a month).

1.Dugup a 100 year old tree from a former residents yard and moved it to the garden

2.Driplines repaired and added to 80% of east side of house, front ½ circle, and newplantings throughout the garden.

3.Allwalkways and pads repaired. The north walkway wasredesigned to accommodate the new shed, newpaver areas were added for Pet Memorials, shed entry, and compost areas.

4.Anew composter was added, chipper used regularly, and a small pathway was addedto the northand south compost area to prevent weeds from getting into the compost. 2additional composters were added atthe end of the season.

5.Produceharvested for the home included: tomatoes, lettuce, spinach, choi, broccoli, kohlrabi, potatoes, onions, leeks, peppers(variety), squash (variety), strawberries, and herbs.

6.Mondayadded as a regular workday and included Saturday workdays from April-Sept.

7.Continuedtree care – pruning, removal of Elm, and protecting from animal damage.

Orient mastergardener program and new volunteer gardeners, and provide education andopportunities for teaching

1.Orientation done for theMaster Gardener class, groups, tours, and individual new volunteers.

2.5Inservices done on workdays (General Orient, Composting, Tree Pruning, RosePruning, Michael Moore Garden) for volunteers.

Last Official Workday for 2011

Thanks to all who came to work on Thursday. It was cold when I arrived at 8am and I didn't end up taking any layers off before I left at about noon. Linda Guarino was the 1st to arrive and she worked on compost and the drip.We have 2 new composters from Home Depot and she finished getting them up and running. She also added some compost from the house which we will continue to do throughout the winter. Judith Chaddock arrived next and she worked on watering indoors and deadheading lavender. Watering indoors will continue throughout the winter 1x a week. I have put a sign-up on the wall in the OW office. It is filled for November Thursdays. I will send out a list of task that need to be done and some basics. The calendar is open for December and 2012 so sign up if you want to help. Julie Holmes and Becky Lewis arrived next and they spent their time deadheading. Nancy Palmer tied up our larger rose bushes. Joe Harte and Linda worked on emptying our rain barrels and cleaning them. Worth noting if you are buying one the ugly black plastic one was very clean inside and the beautiful Fiscars tan barrel was filled with algae (we are guessing the sun got through). I spent my time putting up parking lot reflectors in hopes the snow blower stays out of the gardens this year. I also fed the birds and will continue to do that until we run out of seed. We have placed many suet feeders out and I saw several nuthatches, a woodpecker, and a flicker busy on them yesterday. We actually finished early today at 11, with a good sized crew.

Thanks to the Whites (Ray and Joan) for coffee from Starbucks. We needed it today. Joan won a gift package at the volunteer lunch and she donated it to the garden crew. It contained coffee, tea, a mug, and a gift certificate which was used today.

I will be in the garden occasionally for the next couple of weeks feeding birds, tying up a glider, and putting a small bag of winterizer out, but otherwise enjoying some time off. In January we will have our first meeting for the 2012 season. We will meet monthly after that until April when we began all over again. Watch this blog for dates and times. I will also add a review of 2011 goals and accomplishments.

Thanks for a great season of gardening at Olivia White. As usual "It takes a village". Flagstaff did not disappoint with 18 regular volunteers, 7 occasional, and 4 group workdays.

Loni Shapiro
Volunteer Coordinator
Olivia White Gardens

Workday 10/20/11

Fall has arrived with cooler nights, but the days are still warm. The leaves have begun to fall with an increase in winds. The reds were spectacular this year, but the aspen color was minimal before leaves began falling. On Thursday, another beautiful warm day, Judith Chaddock, Julie Holmes, and Joe Harte joined me in the garden. Judith watered indoors and then helped Julie with deadheading the lavender and Russian sage. Joe came for a short time and we enlisted his help in putting the stone bird baths away for the winter. I planted the last of the bulbs and began giving all our shubs and trees a long drink before winter sets in. If the warm weather continues this will need to happen weekly.

We are almost wrapped up for the season except for indoor watering and filling bird feeders until we run out of food or we can no longer get to them. The plan is for next week to be the last official workday.

Activities include:
Watering indoors and outdoor trees and shrubs
Finish deadheading the lavender
Finish the new composter if the part arrives and get the area ready for winter
Two main lines need to be buried to avoid damage from plows. We also have 2 small repairs.
The rain barrels need to be disconnected and emptyied
Put wheelbarrels and all other hardscape away
Work on glider pad
Plant a few more bulbs

Plans for winter:
Continue watering indoors weekly. There will be a sign-up sheet for this.
If the winter is dry we will water trees and shrubs monthly.

If work is not completed this week we will continue to Nov. 1.

"A garden is never so good as it will be next year."
Thomas Cooper    Horticultural Magazane 1993


Thanks,
Loni

Workdays 10/10/11 & 10/13/11

On the last Monday workday of the season I worked alone. I spent my time getting ready for our big Thursday workday, emptying pots of frozen annuals into the compost pile and watering indoors.

On Thursday, we had a large crew from Northland Prep (11) with a teacher (Jessica Gabrys) and parent (Peggy Scurlock) working with some of our regular crew - Linda Guarino, Betty Marcus, Crys Wells, and my self. They were a variety of ages from 6th grade through Junior in high school. Linda worked with a couple building new compost containers and getting them in place. Betty had a crew cleaning the back porch, putting away table and chairs, watering the sun porch, feeding the birds, and helping with cleaning the sheds and tools. Crys worked with 4 of the students planting tulips, iris, and allium. After I set up a pot washing area several students worked with Peggy Scurlock and washed all the pots. When they finished they got some bags and picked up trash along Turquoise and in the canyon. While there they encountered an intact Fox skeleton.

Other tasks completed included:
Adding manure to the raised beds
Watering outside
Planting 2 Shasta daisy
Sweeping walkways and the small back patio
Cleaning sheds and tools

"I have caught hold of the earth, to use a gardener's phrase, and neither my friends or my enemies will find it and easy manner to transplant me again."
Henry St.John, Lord Bolingbroke (1678-1751)
Letters to Jonathan Swift

It was a very productive day and two of the therapy dogs were in the garden.  Dave Hill was out with Murphy and several residents and Joe Harte stopped by with some hay and brought Pesha.

We still have work for the next couple of weeks:
Deadheading (lavendar, Russian sage)
Watering as needed (sun porch and outside)
Paver work for enlarging a glider pad
Putting away stone birdbaths
Cleaning out rain barrels
Planting the last of the bulbs
Tying up large shrub roses

Plans are for the next 2 Thursdays from 8am-12pm, Come join us!

"Many things grow in the garden that were never sown there."
Thomas Fuller, Gnomologia, 1732

Thanks,
Loni

Special Award from AZ Hospice and Palliative Care Org.

In August, Northland Hospice was nominated for an award based on quality of
hospice and palliative care service.  We at Northland Hospice and Palliative Care
are proud to announce that we have been selected by the Arizona Hospice and
Palliative Care Organization (AHPCO) as the winner of the “Excellence in End-
of-Life-Care” award for 2011!

Here were the guidelines to nominate a program:

“Every day palliative care programs and hospices across our state provide
 compassionate, quality care to patients and families.  As part of our mission
 to advance quality end-of-life  care and serve as a voice and resource for 
 our members and the communities they serve, the Arizona Hospice and 
 Palliative Care Organization (AHPCO) has created an award program to
 recognize a program or agency that has developed and implemented an 
 innovative end-of-life program. Through this recognition program we wish 
 to highlight the good care that is being provided and raise awareness 
 of the importance of excellence in serving patients near the end-of-life.  

We invite you to nominate a program or agency that you consider deserving 
of this recognition.  


Please submit a 1-page narrative that describes why you believe the nominee
should be honored. ”

As an organization, Northland Hospice decided to recognize our volunteers as a
whole.  Our volunteers not only contribute with a great deal of time and effort, but
they also contribute by raising awareness of hospice and palliative care.  
Congratulations to everyone involved with Northland Hospice, as you all
help us provide outstanding service.

Article below:

Northland Hospice AHPCO Nomination Narrative

            Northland Hospice and Palliative Care is the only non-profit hospice 
provider in Flagstaff. We understand that the financial standing of an individual
should have no bearing as to whether or not they get to live out their remaining 
time in comfort and with dignity.  We accept any patient regardless of insurance or 
finances, and provide them with excellent care and support.  We provide a team 
approach, complete with an outstanding medical director, compassionate nurses, 
aides, a knowledgeable social worker, chaplain, and a bereavement counselor, 
all of whom help us run smoothly and efficiently.

            We view Northland Hospice as a “Triangle of Support.”  What makes 
this triangle so successful, and what sets us apart, is the dedication of our 
volunteers.  They are the lifeblood of our organization and are vital to its many parts.

            The first point of our triangle is our thrift store.  The Hodgepodge Thrift
 Store is located on Historic Route 66 and is operated almost entirely by volunteers.  
People donate their lightly used items, and the Hodgepodge sells them at a discounted 
price.  The money generated from this thrift store goes towards helping provide 
hospice to individuals who are in need of end-of-life care.  On a typical day at the 
Hodgepodge, there can be anywhere from half a dozen to more than twenty 
volunteers sorting clothes, pricing items, moving purchased furniture, or 
manning the registers.  Currently, their hard work helps generate revenues
of approximately $19,000 monthly that helps supplement or cover patient hospice costs.

            The second point of our hospice triangle is represented by our event 
volunteers.  Our four major annual events would not be possible without the 
planning and coordination of our event volunteers.  Not only do these events raise
vital operating funds, but they also raise community awareness of Northland’s
mission and merit.

The final point of our triangle is our assisted living hospice service.  The Olivia
White Hospice Home is a ten bedroom home dedicated towards easing one of life’s
most difficult transitions. It is unique to the region in that no other hospice in the 
area has its own building dedicated solely to housing hospice eligible individuals.  
In addition to a qualified staff, we also have patient volunteers who devote countless 
hours towards directly helping our patients.
The gem of the house, and something that everyone at Northland is especially 
proud of, is the garden which is primarily maintained by volunteers.  There are 
seasonal flowers, a vegetable garden, a beautiful gazebo, memorial plaques, and 
even a scavenger hunt for young family visitors.  Our volunteer gardeners put a 
great deal of hard work and love into providing visitors and patients with a 
beautiful daily reminder of life.

            We are not a huge corporation.  We do not try to be something that we 
are not.  We are a local non-profit hospice whose mission is accomplished through
the hard work and dedication of countless individuals, many of whom are unpaid 
volunteers.  It is not an organization helping people, it is people helping people.

Workdays 10/3/11 & 10/7/11

On Monday I worked in the garden cutting back roses and mulching in preparation for the coming winter storm.

Thursday we had a small crew but managed to get many things done before the winter storm arrived. Betty Marcus came and she began by mulching roses and new shrubs and trees. She also put away our hummingbird feeders for the season and helped Crys Wells gather hardscape to put away for the winter. Crys packed up our many decorative items from the Faerie Garden and hanging wind chimes. Judith Chaddock helped Betty with the mulching, watered indoors, added material to the compost, and helped me take down our hanging plants. I managed to find time to put the fountain away. All things that might freeze were taken down and tossed or stored in the sun room. We still have plenty to do in the next two weeks. 

Thanks to Betty, Crys, and Judith for coming out in the cold to help, and to Betty for the tasty lemon bread.

Plans for next week and the following: Wash pots Clean sheds and tools in prep of storing as many wheelbarrows as we can Plant bulbs Mulch sensory pots Assemble new composters if they are here Turn of the drip? I am working on getting a crew from one of the local high schools to help next Thursday. I will advise when I hear from them. I will have them do some of the cleaning chores and plant some bulbs.

Hope to see you in the next couple of weeks. Loni